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PNS Daily Newscast - February 22, 2019

North Carolina will hold a new election to fill the final disputed seat in the U.S. House. Also on our Friday rundown: Baltimore sues Monsanto and others for polluting city waterways. Plus, a public lands program moves towards permanent status.

Gelb says one of the most effective changes the state made was re-categorizing certain nonviolent crimes from felonies to misdemeanors.

"This helps keep people out of expensive prison cells who don't present a threat to public safety, but it also prevents them from getting a felony conviction on their record, which has real long-term consequences for their ability to get jobs and housing and become self-sufficient," he states.

Gelb says the money Utah is saving by prioritizing prison space for serious, violent criminals is allowing the state to invest more in rehabilitation programs for low-level offenders.

Gelb stresses the changes Utah has made do not mean the state is letting criminals off the hook or encouraging crime by reducing punishment. In fact, the state's crime rate has dropped.

"It is very clear now from the experience over the last couple years in Utah, as well as over the past decade in states across the country, that we can reduce crime and imprisonment at the same time,” he states. “In fact, states that are reducing their imprisonment rates by the most are having bigger reductions in crime than states where prisons continue to grow."

Gelb says if Utah politicians follow through with efforts to keep the state's prison populations low, Utah taxpayers could save $500 million over 20 years.